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PSL
TxCoyote
Member Posts: 140 ✭✭✭
Is the Romanian PSL in 7.62x54 caliber worth the price? The PSL is a copy of the Drugunov but the parts do not interchange.
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What the PSL is happens to basically be a large AK. They function the same as an AK, just most of the parts are larger to be scaled to .30 caliber size.
With all that said for the price I think they are a pretty good gun. I have one and the only thing I dont like is mine came with a 4x scope. The scope is very nice and clear for a 4x but when shooting past 300 yards it is really lacking.
The ammo is cheep still. The gun is cheep. While it is never going to be a target gun they are fairly accurate and fun to shoot. I think they are totally wroth it.
I have been considering the PSL based on the Mosin/Nagant rifle I have. As you probably know it also is 7.62x54 and performs well for an ancient rifle. It is not a tak driver but is fun to shoot and is a great hog gun. The ammo is cheap if you do not mind corrosive ammo.
I totally understand. I went the other way though. I got the PLS first when ammo was way cheeper. I bought the gun then sold some .50 cal ammo I had stored up before ammo prices started to climb. I ended up selling it as I decided I would never own a .50 and bought 10k of ammo at $0.10/rd shipped. I decided I need some more guns for that ammo so now I own 2 M44's, a 91/3 and a "clone" 91/30 PU sniper. They are all a lot of fun.
The PSL is a good rifle. You just need to know what it is and what it isnt.
Is the Romanian PSL in 7.62x54 caliber worth the price? The PSL is a copy of the Drugunov but the parts do not interchange.
As mentioned, its really only a cosmetic copy of the Russian Dragunov. The operation of the two is totally different.
Whether or not its "worth it" depends on what you want to do with it (plus of course how much you pay!). But in general, I don't think the gun is overpriced for what you get.
Its basically a large Kalashnikov rifle chambered for 7.62x54R.
Though it IS more accurate than a typical AK, its NOT really more accurate than what most Americans would expect out of a true "sniper" rifle.
If you think of it as a 300 yard semi-auto banger that hits as hard as a .308 but runs on surplus ammo costing less than half per round, you're about right.
Nwcid, get yourself one of these 8X scopes, and scrap the trigger for a Red Star adjustable. It will really reach out there with some fine tuning. Once you have the built in range finder figured out, it's easy to hit a 10" target at 800 meters. Stay away from the variable power scopes, they're all over the place.
http://www.kalinkaoptics.com/rifle-scopes/posp/svd-psl-tigr-romak-3/posp-8x42-d-w-black-finish-independent-focus-and-1000-meter-rangefinder-rifle-scope-sks-svd-version.html
TxCoyote, the PSL was never designed as a true sniper rifle, it was made to be a squad support weapon. After hearing all the second hand reports of accuracy problems with a hot barrel, I bought one anyhow. Mine doesn't have a problem, hot or cold.
These rifles are designed for light ball ammo (147grn), and heavy ball should not be used in them, especially without a bolt buffer, or you'll beat the internals to pieces.
Factory trigger pull is horrendous, the spring cushioned steel recoil plate is distracting, and the length of pull was a little short for me.
There's a cheap rubber recoil pad made specific for the PSL that cured two problems, and the drop in Red Star trigger and bolt buffer from Blackjack cured the rest.
Is it worth the price?
Compared to a Dragonov, or M-1A at 3-5 times the cost, and surplus ammo at $0.22 a round, I'd say it's a bargain.
Two things that are relatively easy to do is "freefloat the barrel. This is don by wideing and deepening the barrel channel in the lower handguard until it is no longer touching the barrel.
It is easy to make a foam cheek piece and attach it to the stock, which is someting I recommend if you do nothing else with it.
another thing you can do is get a piece of picatinny rail weilded in front of the mag well, then you can add a bi-pod such as a shootersridge or Harris useing an adapter without putting pressure on the handguards. A friend of mine has his rifle set up to shoot long range and it does so very well with proper ammo.
Dont shoot heavy Ball(200 grain or heavier), anything above 7n1 or the sellier and bellot match ammo is too heavy and will cause wear quickly. Wolf sells a 200 grain match load, but it is designed for use in bolt guns, though if you were to dope the round and reserve it for longe range shooting I cant see the harm. light Ball or Wolf 147 grain hollow points work great inside 400-500 yards. Match loads for shooting further then that is the way I and others do it.
Soon Texas Weapons Systems will be comming out with a high quality over the reciever Picatinny mount similar to the one they have made for the AK. This mount is very rigid on the ak, has a backup peep sight built in and will accomodate just about any scope you can think of. Once this mount is available the PSL will be much easier to use with night vision and such.